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Travel Guide

Evanston is a city in Cook County, Illinois, bordering the city of Chicago. Evanston has a population of 75.000 people and an area of 8 square miles. Before 1830, the area was uninhabited, after 1830, French explorers named it Grosse Point. Until it got its final name, the city was called Heavenston, The City of Churches, The City of Homes, The People's Republic of Evanston and E-Town. The town of Evanston was incorporated only in 1863, at the end of the year. Today, Evanston is famous for being the home of the Northwestern University and also of other educational institutions.

Top Attractions within Evanston

Evanston, Illinois is located in Cook County Illinois. This 7.8 square mile city is a suburb of Chicago and it situated on Lake Michigan. Evanston is sure to delight visitors with its diverse attractions and natural beauty.

Frances Willard House is the former home of Frances Willard, the women's suffragist and her family. Half of the house was built by her father in 1865 and the other half is an enlargement made in 1878. The house is build in the Gothic Revival style. Until 1898 when Frances Willard died, this Evanston house was her home.

Free School of Evanston is a former alternative school which was opened in 1971 and closed in 1976. This was a free school where parents, students and teachers were considered to be equal and all had right to vote. The school did not had or pursued any educational accreditation.

Grosse Point Light is an Evanston lighthouse which was completed in 1873 after more than one maritime disaster happened in the area. The project of the lighthouse was supervised by architect Orlando Metcalf Poe. The building is designed in Italianate style. This Evanston attraction is a site of legends that attract thousand of tourists. Nowadays, in weekends, guided tours can be taken.

Mount Trashmore is a hill located in a park of the city. This particular Evanston attraction was a solid waste landfill that in 1965 was converted into Robert E. James Park.

Top 5 Things to Do in Evanston

1. Tour the Evanston History Center: The Charles Gates Dawes home is a 25 room French Chateaux style home, built on 2 lakefront acres in 1894. It is now home to the Evanston History Center. More than 3,500 artifacts, documents, and exhibits illustrate Evanston's history from Native American times to the present.

2. Lounge on the lakefront beach: Spend the day relaxing at one of 5 public beaches in Evanston. Lifeguards are on duty from early June until Labor Day and there is an admission fee. Sailboats and kayaks are available for rent at the Dempster Street Beach office.

3. Grosse Point Lighthouse: This lighthouse, built in 1873, serves as a symbol of the city of Evanston. It was the first of the Great Lakes lighthouses to be designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1999. Climb the 141 stairs as you tour the keeper's quarters and look out across Lake Michigan. Tours are given on weekends in June through September.

4. Tour the Frances Willard House: Frances Willard was president of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union from 1879 to 1898. Willard's social reform efforts drove the WCTU to become one of the largest organizations for women in the 19th century. The home, in which she lived and worked, is open for tours on the first and third Sundays of each month.

5. Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art: Located at Northwestern University, The Block is a fine arts museum. This contemporary style glass and limestone building is home to a vast collection of art from the 13th century to present day works.